Alcatel Letter

The Alcatel letter is the notification document that sits at the heart of the European procurement remedies framework. It simultaneously informs every tenderer of the outcome of an award decision and starts the clock on the standstill period during which legal challenges may be brought to prevent contract signature.

What is the Alcatel Letter?

The Alcatel letter takes its informal name from the same 1999 Court of Justice ruling that gave rise to the Alcatel period concept. In formal terms it is the award decision notification required by Article 2a(2) of the Remedies Directives (as amended by Directive 2007/66/EC) and by Article 55 of Directive 2014/24/EU, which governs the debriefing and notification obligations of contracting authorities.

The letter must be sent to every tenderer and candidate that has not been definitively excluded from the procedure. It must contain:

• The name of the successful tenderer.
• The reasons why the recipient's bid was unsuccessful, including the scores awarded and the relative advantages of the winning offer compared to the recipient's own bid.
• A precise indication of the standstill period that applies and the exact date before which a challenge must be filed to trigger the automatic suspension.

Sending the Alcatel letter is not optional. A contracting authority that proceeds to sign a contract without issuing it, or that issues it so late that the standstill period is effectively truncated, risks having the contract declared ineffective.

In the UK, the equivalent obligation under the Procurement Act 2023 is captured in the "assessment summary" that must be sent to all tenderers, setting out scores and the reasons for the outcome.

Why the Alcatel Letter Matters for Bidders

The Alcatel letter is the starting gun for any pre-contractual remedy. From the moment it is received, the clock is running. A bidder who wants to challenge the award decision has a very short window, typically 10 calendar days in EU member states, to decide whether to file proceedings and trigger the automatic suspension.

The letter also contains the comparative scoring information that is essential for assessing whether a challenge is viable. If the scores reveal a calculation error or show that a criterion was applied inconsistently, the bidder has concrete grounds to put before a national review body.

Example

A French hospital authority runs a tender for cleaning services. It sends Alcatel letters by email on a Friday to all four tenderers. The letters state that Supplier A won, with a quality score of 82 and a price score of 74. Supplier B's letter states their quality score was 61 and price score 79. Supplier B reviews the scoring and believes their methodology score was miscalculated. They contact their legal advisers over the weekend and file a procurement complaint with the administrative tribunal on the Wednesday, within the 10-day standstill. The automatic suspension comes into effect.

Frequently Asked Questions

Must the Alcatel letter be sent by recorded post or email?

The directive does not mandate a specific channel, but the contracting authority must be able to demonstrate when the notification was sent and received, because the standstill period clock starts from receipt. Electronic communication is most common and most reliable for evidencing delivery. Where national rules require a specific form, those rules take precedence.

What if the Alcatel letter omits the comparative scores?

An incomplete Alcatel letter may still start the standstill period, but it gives the bidder grounds to argue that they could not meaningfully assess the decision without the omitted information. In some jurisdictions, inadequate reasoning in the notification letter can itself be a ground of challenge. A bidder who believes the letter is materially incomplete should seek legal advice promptly rather than waiting for fuller information.

Does the Alcatel letter apply to framework agreement call-offs?

Generally no. The standstill obligation and the corresponding notification requirement typically apply to above-threshold contracts and framework agreements at the establishment stage, not to individual call-off awards. However, some member states and UK public bodies voluntarily apply a standstill to significant call-offs as a matter of best practice.